Testing a Theory
by immertreu
Summary: A Danger Room session with Scott, Logan and Jean leads to some discoveries (or: Wolverine helps Cyclops and Jean get some perspective regarding their powers).


A/N: Many thanks to IcyWaters for the wonderful beta. She puts up with my constant fandom jumping and my crazy new ideas. She also found the title for this fic. Thank you!

This story takes places during the first X-Men movie between Logan's second awakening in the infirmay (after Liberty Island) and his talk with the Professor before he went north again. Characterizations are solely based on the first movie.

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**Testing a Theory**

by immertreu

June 19,2014

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When the Danger Room session Logan had unexpectedly barged in on evolved into a battle of wills between three of their adult X-Men, Ororo escorted the younger mutants out. Scott, Jean and Logan ignored her warning glare and sprinted off in different directions.

Maybe it was time that Wolverine and Cyclops finally had it out in a friendly environment. Jean obviously stayed to make sure they wouldn't accidentally kill each other – or rather that the almost indestructible Logan wouldn't inadvertently spear Scott.

The three of them had been playing hide-and-seek for a few minutes, not yet willing to enter a fight that might turn heated within seconds.

Their surroundings resembled a thick forest with big boulders thrown in between some of the tree trunks. Jean was currently hiding behind one large rock, looking for Logan with her psychic abilities.

Logan knew she would never read his thoughts without his consent – unless in dire circumstances – but she used her natural gift as easy as drawing a breath these days and was a force to be reckoned with, even without her realizing it. Logan knew where she was, though, so he turned around to look for their missing man.

Scott was still nowhere to be seen, but Logan could smell him near. Twisting around and suddenly jumping up on the boulder right behind him, he found his opponent. Scott was lying flat on his belly but quickly rolled and prepared to slip out of Logan's reach. He wasn't fast enough, though.

Logan knocked away the kneeling man's fists and plucked the visor off his "enemy's" nose with his claw-less hands. Scott's eyes were squeezed shut.

Jean's frantic yell of "Are you crazy?!" collided with Scott's angry curse: "Shit!" Then the usually stoic man slipped down to the moss-covered floor, minus his weaponized glasses.

Absent-mindedly, Logan thought about how real the illusion looked while simultaneously marveling at the fact that Scott hadn't burned a hole into him or the ceiling – yet. Silently, he started stalking his prey that had snuck behind a thick tree stump a few meters away, but when he reached Scott's hiding place, the other man was no longer there. Slightly impressed, he carefully tucked the visor into his belt to get his hands free and crept forward. A shout at his back made him jump and get out his claws.

"Scott! Five o'clock, now!" Jean screamed, and before Logan could figure out her cryptic message, a black-clad, slightly disheveled Scott jumped him seemingly from nowhere, grabbed him around the middle and brought him down to the floor by his sheer momentum.

Despite his still-closed eyes and lesser weight, Scott had the element of surprise and quick reflexes on his side. Not giving Logan enough time to recover – and clearly knowing that his opponent didn't really want to hurt him with his claws – he felt for his visor, yanked it out of Logan's belt and dove away. He rolled to his feet, already in the motion of putting on his eyewear, and ducked behind another boulder for cover.

Not even bothering to follow him, Logan craned his head to look back at Jean. She stood with a furious expression on her face, one hand outstretched as if prepared to pin him in place with her telekinesis in case he tried anything. He raised his now bare hands in surrender. "I give."

Slowly, she let her arm fall to her side. Scott emerged, his mouth grim and angry, his eyes hidden again. "What were you thinking?!" he demanded. "I could have hurt you – or Jean!"

"Nah, you wouldn't," Logan drawled and finally got up. "I was just testing a theory."

Jean chimed in. "A theory?" She was shaking with anger. "He could have burnt a hole into the roof and brought down the whole building – including the students – on top of us."

Logan shook his head. "As I said, I knew he wouldn't."

"Oh, yeah?" Scott's voice was sarcastic. "How?" he hissed.

Sensing that both his colleagues were about to storm from the room if they didn't get any real explanation for his actions soon, Logan gestured toward Scott. "You've been working on your reaction time since the incident at the train station, right?"

Still miffed, Scott nodded.

Logan turned to Jean. "So I trusted that this time he would close his eyes before the visor came off." He shrugged and added, "As much as it pains me to admit it, the Professor wouldn't make an idiot the field leader of the X-Men."

Scott snorted and said dryly, "Thanks. I think." He set his jaw. "It was still reckless."

Logan didn't react but continued to speak to Jean. "I knew Scott would work on this problem in case it ever happened again. Besides, I don't think even he could kill me. I hope…"

He cleared his throat and ignored Scott's muttered challenge of "You want me to try?" Jean's raised eyebrow showed she'd heard.

"Anyway, I also wanted to see how well you worked together. Apart from our adventure at Liberty Island, I haven't really seen you in action. Now I know a little more. Scott warned you telepathically, didn't he?"

Jean confirmed it. "He can't send me clear sentences or pictures like the Professor, but he projected a sense of danger from himself."

Logan nodded to himself. Then he turned to Scott and asked bluntly, "How long did you go blind?"

Scott immediately turned rigid as if Logan had slapped him. His impassive face gave nothing away, but Logan had spent enough time around the other man to know when he'd hit a nerve.

Instead of riling the team leader as he would normally do, Logan calmly replied, "You often tilt your head as if you're listening to something instead of looking at your surroundings. You also count steps and map the area in your mind, do you not?"

Not being able to see Scott's eyes hidden by the visor, Logan could only imagine the deathly glare directed at him. He addressed his next comment to Jean, "You told him how to jump me, didn't you?"

She simply nodded, and Scott finally relaxed a little, still glaring imaginary daggers at Logan. Then he took a deep breath and said in a strange voice, "Not that it's any of your business… about six months."

"Six months?" Logan gulped. "Sorry, kid." Covering up his atypical kind response toward his rival, he added quickly, "Must have been tough, but you know it's an advantage in a fight, right?"

Scott tilted his head, appraising him. He sounded calmer now. "Yes, but it can be pretty useless, too. Most opponents don't expect it, but it only works in a closed environment or one I'm familiar with, like the training room. I did design this simulation, you know."

Logan ignored the challenge in the younger man's tone who felt his authority questioned. "Still, it's an asset. Use it." And with that, he simply turned and started to walk in the direction of the door which was still hidden by "trees".

He was almost there when Scott's voice rang out behind him. "Hey, Logan! Thinking about the team for a change?"

Sincere thanks resonated in the ironic quip. Logan simply raised a hand – one claw outstretched.

Scott's chuckle got drowned out by Jean's suffering sigh. "Very mature, boys." But she was clearly grinning.

Satisfied, Logan walked out of the training room. Maybe the smart-ass kid wasn't so bad after all. He was ready to listen to improve his performance – which might help him and the ones he commanded. Logan could respect that.

Why Jean put up with the Boy Scout was still quite beyond him, though. Scott looked too young to even drink at times, and he was as stiff as a piece of wood, never really showing what he thought or felt unless someone he cared about was threatened. Even his reactions toward Logan had been too tame for the older man's liking. If someone had tried to take his girl away from Wolverine, he wouldn't just have closed the door in said someone's face. He'd torn out the whole thing and hit his rival over the head with it.

Chuckling at the image his mind conjured up, he went to look for the Professor. He wanted some answers about his past. Now.

**The End**


End file.
